Leading STEM Summer Camp Offered Near DoD Laboratories and Centers
Camp Invention®, a nationally recognized, nonprofit summer enrichment camp program, today announced it has received a $250,000 grant from the Defense Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Consortium (DSEC).
Because of the grant, more than 1,000 underserved military-connected children in locations close to U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) facilities, to include laboratories and centers, as well as military installations, in the Gulf Coast and Midwest regions will attend the program this summer.
For more than three decades, Camp Invention, a program of the National Inventors Hall of Fame® (NIHF) in partnership with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, has developed confidence and problem-solving skills in young innovators through authentic, hands-on STEM activities inspired by NIHF Inductees. Camp Invention promotes STEM learning; builds leadership, perseverance and resourcefulness; and encourages entrepreneurship — in an exciting and engaging environment.
In the 2022 program, Explore, campers will design a tank for their robotic fish, experiment with animation and materials science, explore distant moons and construct their own marble arcade.
“We are thrilled to welcome Camp Invention to the Defense STEM Education Consortium,” said DSEC Chair Rebecca Stanley. “We are committed to engaging students in meaningful STEM experiences to inspire their continued pursuit of STEM opportunities.”
“The National Inventors Hall of Fame is a world-class organization that pays it forward through our educational programs, competitions and events,” said NIHF CEO Michael Oister. “Thanks to this grant from DSEC, 1,000 underrepresented students near DoD facilities will get the opportunity to attend our Camp Invention program this summer. Our mission is to provide more children-in-need the opportunity to experience our programs, develop their own Innovation Mindset, and benefit from the problem-based learning and hands-on activities so we can boost their knowledge of STEM disciplines.”
Local programs are facilitated and taught by certified local educators. Annually, Camp Invention programs benefit more than 130,000 children and partner with 1,800 schools and districts across the nation. Educators and school districts can partner with Camp Invention by visiting invent.org/camp.